Device for lighting cigarettes, for special application in automotors

ABSTRACT

An electric cigarette lighter for use in an automobile in which an electrically heated grid is placed thermally insulated in an enclosed removable housing. Heater elements and bimetallic elements which are subject to damage through long use are in the removable element to allow easy repair of most damaged units. A funnel-shaped handle allows easier use of the device.

I United States Patent 11 1 1111 3,878,359 Jannello Apr. 15, 1975 [54]DEVICE FOR LIGHTING CIGARETTES, 2,557,225 6/1951 Hutchinson 219/261 P IN 2,902,579 9/1959 Hutchinson 219/261 LICAT 0N1 2,918,559 12/1959Pramaggiore 219/269 3,134,885 5/1964 Pramaggiore 219/264 [76] Inventor:Francisco Carlos Salvador Jannello, 0 1972 ata, 2 /265 cangallo 244Mendoza, Argentina 3,692,976 9/1972 Pramaggmrc 219/264 [22] Filed: Mar.6, 1974 Primary Examiner-Volodymyr Y. Mayewsky [21] PP N05 448,698Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Otto John Munz [30] Foreign ApplicationPriority Data Mar. 14, 1973 Argentina 247052 [57] ABSTRACT An electriccigarette lighter for use in an automobile [52] US. Cl 219/261; 219/265in which an electrically heated grid is placed thermally [51] Int. Cl.F23g 7/00 insulated in an enclosed removable housing. Heater 1 Field ofSearch elements and bimetallic elements which are subject to 219/267,269 damage through long use are in the removable element to allow easyrepair of most damaged units. A [56] References Cited funnel-shapedhandle allows easier use of the device.

UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,381,726 8/1945 Davis 219/261 3 6 Draw gunsBACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The presentinvention refers to an electric safety device for lighting cigarettes inautomobiles.

The present invention provides an incandescent grid conventional lighterthat overcomes the difficulties of the lighter used at present which aregenerally known.

2. Description of the Prior Art The conventional lighter has twoprincipal parts a fixed housing or socket and a removable cylindricalassembly.

The fixed housing or socket is a metal cylindrical housing with itswalls connected to electrical ground, that is usually to say, thenegative pole of the battery, while the bottom has two bimetallic platedhooks, the hooks being insulated from the housing and connected to thepositive pole of the battery.

The removable cylindrical assembly placed in the fixed housing has anelectrical resistance grid (nichrome type) and an internal displacementdevice with a reactive spring. The grid is arranged within a metalsemi-housing which is coupled to the bimetallic hooks and is interposedin the closed electric circuit. The heat of the grid, upon reachingincandescence, opens the hooks, and thus, by the operation of thecompressed spring, the housing is separated from the hooks and opens theelectric circuit. The removable body can therefore be withdrawn, sincethe thermal inertia of the grid maintains the heat during the periodnecessary for its external use.

However, the lighter has several drawbacks.

The grid is located in an open end, which may cause accidental burns inthe case ofa sudden movement in driving or should it fall onto thefloor, on the clothes or onto the seat. Furthermore, the grid, even whenit is no longer incandescent. can also cause burns, if it isinadvertently touched while it is still sufficiently hot.

Two elements are subject to wear, the grid and the bimetallic elements.In case the grid should fail, the replacement of the removal elementcorrectly solves the failure. In case the bimetallic element breakdown,as happens in continuous use, the repair is costly because it isnecessary to disassemble the panel in order to replace the socket.

in order to light a cigarette the position of the grid in the open endcompels the driver to effect the operation visually so as to obtain thenecessary grid-cigarette coincidence.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In the present invention, as may be observedbelow, the cited drawbacks have been overcome, as follows.

The grid is located in a closed housing which is thermally isolated;therefore the is no danger of burns or of ignition of combustible partsby accidental contact.

All the elements subject to wear, that is all grids and bimetallicelements, are placed within the removable element. In case of damage,reconditioning of the lighter is effected by substitution of thereplacable element without disassembly.

The grid-cigarette coincidence for lighting is obtained without need tosee the operation, as the cigarette is guided by a funnel and a tube upto the grid,

thereby effecting contact in a plane perpendicular to the axis of thecigarette.

A device according to the present invention uses only 15 pieces asopposed to 28 pieces used by a conventional lighter.

The location of the grid within a closed housing thermally insulated asin the present invention, permits the thermal inertia to last longer,whereby it maintains a good lighting condition during a longer period.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS For a better understanding of thisspecification, the following drawings are attached.

FIG. 1 represents a sectional view of the device on its axis in thehooked position;

FIG. 2 represents a similar sectional view of the device in an unhookedposition after heating;

FIG. 3 represents an axis sectional view in a plane perpendicular to theplane of sections 1 and 2, of the device in an unhooked position;

FIGS. 4, 5 and 6 are plan sectional views perpendicular-to the axis atsectional lines indicated in respectively FIGS. 1, 2 and 3.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The device which producesignition is described below.

A cylindrical housing 1 houses a central contact terminal 2 at thebottom, electrically isolated from the housing and connected to thepositive pole of the battery.

The lower portion of housing 1 has air inlet orifices 3. The top parthas spring plates 4 fastening a removable body in position.

The removable body 5 has a hollow axial body of revolution 6, with atube 7 whose diameter is slightly larger than that of a conventionalcigarette, that is to say, from 10 to l 1 mm, the tube ending in afunnel 8. The body 6 has an outer annular expansion or flange 9operating as an upper guide and supporting a spring 10 with an annulargroove or chute 11 in its lower portion. The body 6 is housed withinanother cylindrical axial body of revolution 12 which forms a removablehousing, with an annular locking edge 13 on the upper part and a ring 14in the middle, that supports spring 10 and guides body 6. A thermallyresistant dielectric gasket 15 with a central orifice is housed at thebottom. A bolt 16 passes through the orifice, ending externally in anelectrically insulated contact border 17 of housing I.

The other end of bolt-16 is used as the central terminal of a spiralelectric heater resistance 18. The resistance rests on a metal plate 19,and is electrically insulated by a mica plate 20 on its rest point,while in its outer end, the spiral 18 is welded to the metal plate 19.Joined with plate 19 is a U-shaped bimetallic plate 21 which ends inhooks directed towards the axis 22 in adequate position for hooking ingroove 11, against which they bear pressure due to their elasticcondition.

At the bottom of housing 12 are orifices 23 serving as air inlets forcombustion. On the upper portion of housing 12 there is a small annulargroove 24 where the spring plates 4 are inserted to fix body 6 smoothlyin operative position. At the bottom of the housing there .is a thermalsafety insulating coating 25.

In operation, the removable body 5 is inserted in housing 1, where theplates 4 fasten it upon reaching groove 24. When the body 5 is pressedby means of the end 8 of piece 6, the spring 10 becomes compressedallowing movement of piece 6 to the hooking position of bimetallicelements 21 in groove 11. In the hooking position, the electric flowfrom a battery passes from the positive pole of terminal 2 to terminal17 by contact and from there through bolt 16 to the center of resistance18. From the other end of resistance 18, or from the border it flows toplate 19 and from there to bimetallic elements 21, subsequently to piece6 and from there through 14 and 9 to housing 1 connected to ground.

The electric power heats grid 18, and the grid heats bimetallic elements21, such that they become deformed and open and thus free piece 6. Theoperation of the previously compressed spring 10 displaces piece 6outwardly until it reaches the expansion 9 at the top 13. The electriccircuit is thus interrupted.

If it is desired to use the lighter in a conventional manner, at thesound of unhooking, the removable body 5 is withdrawn and usedexternally while grid 18 continues incandescent through thermal inertia,in a similar manner as its present use, with the sole difference thatthe grid is within tube 7 and not at the end of the lighter, thus thecigarette must be inserted through the tube to make contact with thegrid and effect the usual suction.

I claim:

1. In a device for lighting cigarettes for installation in a panel of anautomotive vehicle, including a fixed into the fixed housing andincluding therein an electric terminal (17) electrically isolated fromthe main body of the removable housing, wherein an electric potentialmay be applied between the terminal and the main body.

B. an electric heating element (18) including two electrical endsthereof, the heating element being fixedly mounted within the removablehousing and having one of its electrical ends in good electrical contactwith the electric terminal (17), the heating element being electricallyinsulated from said main body,

C. bimetallic hooking means (21) fixedly mounted within the removablehousing and being in good electrical contact with the other electricalend of the heating element.

D. a spring-biased hollow electrically conductive element (6) includinga groove (11) placed to be hooked by the hooking means, whereby thehooking means engages the grooves only when the heating element andtherefore the hooking means are not heated sufficiently to deform thehooking means and release the groove, and wherein the hollow element isspring biased away from the hooking means when the hooking means releasethe grooves, the hollow element being in good electrical contact withthe main body of the removable housing.

2. A device according to claim 1, wherein the hollow element (6)comprises a funnel-shaped external orifice terminating in a cylindricalchute slightly larger in diameter than a cigarette, the heating elementbeing placed in a perpendicular plane to the axis of the chute.

3. A device according to claim 8, wherein the removable housing includesair inlets around the electric terminal.

1. In a device for lighting cigarettes for installation in a panel of anautomotive vehicle, including a fixed housing (1) securely affixed insaid panel and a removable assembly (5) fitted into the fixed housingwhen electric power is supplied thereto and manually removable from thefixed housing for use in lighting cigarettes, the improved removableassembly comprising: A. a removable housing (12) sized to fit smoothlyinto the fixed housing and including therein an electric terminal (17)electrically isolated from the main body of the removable housing,wherein an electric potential may be applied between the terminal andthe main body, B. an electric heating element (18) including twoelectrical ends thereof, the heating element being fixedly mountedwithin the removable housing and having one of its electrical ends ingood electrical contact with the electric terminal (17), the heatingelement being electrically insulated from said main body, C. bimetallichooking means (21) fixedly mounted within the removable housing andbeing in good electrical contact with the other electrical end of theheating element, D. a spring-biased hollow electrically conductiveelement (6) including a groove (11) placed to be hooked by the hookingmeans, whereby the hooking means engages the grooves only when theheating element and therefore the hooking means are not heatedsufficiently to deform the hooking means and release the groove, andwherein the hollow element is spring biased away from the hooking meanswhen the hooking means release the grooves, the hollow element being ingood electrical contact with the main body of the removable housing. 2.A device according to claim 1, wherein the hollow element (6) comprisesa funnel-shaped external orifice terminating in a cylindrical chuteslightly larger in diameter than a cigarette, the heating element beingplaced in a perpendicular plane to the axis of the chute.
 3. A deviceaccording to claim 8, wherein the removable housing includes air inletsaround the electric terminal.